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Elastic Resistance versus
Free-Weight Resistance
By Jim Stoppani, PhD
The Similarities
Elastic
resistance exercise, such as the use of elastic tubing equipment, has been used
for almost a century6. It originally was used as a fitness
technique, but eventually progressed to be used as a rehabilitation device.
Today it is used commonly in both fitness and rehabilitation facilities around
the world.
Both elastic
resistance and free-weight resistance (such as barbells and dumbbells) have
several similar properties: a) both provide some form of resistance, b) both
allow a free range of motion, c) both allow variable speed of movement, and d)
both allow progressive resistance. All four of these properties are critical
for the benefits offered by effective resistance-training programs.
Despite the
similarities between elastic resistance and free-weight resistance, people
would assume, due to the lightweight and “flimsy appearance of elastic
resistance equipment such as elastic tubing, that free weights are clearly the
better resistance equipment. However, studies have shown that muscle activity
and peak load during elastic-resistance exercise is similar to free-weight
resistance exercise3,7. This means that when comparing the same
exercise performed with an elastic resistance device or with free weights, the
amount of muscle fibers activated is similar and the amount of force provided
by the muscle fibers is similar.
Studies on
elastic resistance training have also shown that programs using elastic tubing,
elastic bands and similar devices increase muscle strength and muscle size and
decrease body fat in a similar manner to free-weight training programs1,2,4,7,9.
The Differences
In addition to
the similarities that elastic resistance shares with free-weight resistance,
there are several benefits that elastic resistance offers that free-weight
resistance does not.
One
of the most important benefits of elastic resistance is that, unlike free
weights, it does not rely on gravity to provide resistance. This increases its
potential for use in more functional movement patterns that mimic both everyday
activities and sport-specific activities. Because free weights rely on gravity
to provide resistance, they can only provide resistance in a vertical plane
—the direction of gravity. This means that if you do an exercise with a free
weight in the horizontal plane, such as moving your left hand (while holding a
dumbbell) from the left side of your body to the right side of your body, there
is no resistance to that movement. With elastic tubing, on the other hand, you
can have resistance when doing exercises in a horizontal plane. This means you
can perform exercises such as twisting your body from side to side, side kicks
and punches, as well as movements that mimic a baseball swing or basketball
pass with elastic resistance. Performing exercises with resistance in a
horizontal plane better prepares the individual for performing daily tasks—such
as turning his body while carrying a heavy box—much easier and with less risk
for injury. It also better prepares athletes for competitive movements that
take place in a horizontal plane, such as swinging a baseball bat, and helps to
prevent sports injuries. A study published in a 1998 issue of American
Journal of Sports Medicine, reported that collegiate tennis players who
trained using elastic bands increased their shoulder strength and the speed of
their tennis serve12. Another study, from
Because elastic
resistance does not rely on gravity to provide resistance, it is possible to
change the emphasis placed on muscles during certain exercises. This is made
possible by changing the direction of pull of the elastic tubing or bands. For
example, research from
Another Benefit
The fact that elastic resistance does not rely on gravity is
that it provides continuous tension to the muscles being trained. When you lift
a free weight like a dumbbell in any direction other than straight up and down,
the tension on the muscle can actually be removed at certain points in the
range of motion. For example, when doing a biceps curl with a dumbbell, as you
curl the dumbbell up towards the shoulder, at the very top of the movement the
dumbbell is literally falling towards the shoulder. This means that the tension
on the biceps has been removed because the dumbbell is no longer being lifted
up against gravity by the biceps. When doing a biceps curl with elastic
resistance, the tension is present throughout the entire range of motion
because the elastic material provides resistance due to its own properties.
The fact that
elastic resistance equipment does not rely on gravity also means that the
elastic resistance equipment used can be inexpensive, lightweight and easily
stored and transported despite its ability to provide strong resistance11.
On the contrary, free weights must be heavy and cumbersome to provide strong
resistance. In addition, free weights tend to be expensive as they are
typically priced by the pound. Another unique benefit of elastic resistance
that free weight resistance does not offer is linear variable resistance. What
this means is that, as the range of motion of the exercise increases, the
resistance provided by the elastic equipment increases. For example, when doing
a biceps curl, as you curl your hand up toward your shoulder, the resistance of
the elastic tubing increases. This is due to the physical properties of elastic
material. As its length increases (from being stretched), it provides more
resistance11. One of the benefits of this is that as the range of
motion increases and the resistance increases, the number of muscle fibers that
are being used in the exercising muscle increase. The more muscle fibers being
used, the greater the adaptations in muscle strength that can be achieved with
the training program. This benefit is not offered by free-weight resistance.
One More Reason
Linear variable
resistance, as provided by elastic resistance, is beneficial is due to what is
known as the strength curve of muscles. The linear variable resistance provided
by elastic tubing better mimics the strength curves of most muscles. A strength
curve refers to the way a muscle’s or muscle group’s strength changes over a
range of motion. Because of their anatomy, most muscles increase in strength
over the range of motion until a certain point. Again using the biceps curl as
an example, as you curl the hand toward the shoulder, the muscle gets stronger
up until about the halfway point of the range of motion. Thus, the biceps
muscle is weakest at the start of the exercise and strongest at the halfway
point of the exercise. When doing a biceps curl with a free weight, the
individual is limited to how much resistance he can use by how strong the
biceps are at the beginning of the exercise (its weakest point). That means
that during the biceps curl, the muscle is not receiving adequate resistance
when the muscle is in its strongest point in the range of motion. When
performing a curl with elastic tubing, however, the resistance increases as the
range of motion increases. This means the muscle is receiving greater
resistance at its strongest point in the range of motion and therefore is
receiving more adequate resistance to better stimulate strength adaptations.
Many individuals
using elastic resistance report that they can feel a difference, such as a
stronger burn in the muscles and greater muscle fatigue, as compared to when
they use free weights. This is due to the linear variable resistance that the
elastic resistance equipment offers. This allows a greater number of muscle
fibers to be used and taxed throughout the range of motion. Anecdotal evidence
aside, research studies also confirm this difference. One study performed at
A critical benefit of elastic resistance is that it prevents the user from
“cheating” on the exercise being performed6. This is a common
practice, especially for beginners, when using free weights. Cheating involves
the use of momentum to get the weight moving. Once the weight has built up
momentum, the muscle fibers do not need to be maximally activated to continue
moving the weight throughout the rest of the range of motion of the exercise.
This is due to the fact that the physics of momentum have taken over to move
the weight. The physical properties of elastic resistance devices do not allow
the user to cheat by using momentum. This is because the resistance from the
elastic equipment comes from the stretching of the elastic material and not the
mass of the elastic equipment. The only way to continue a movement while
performing an exercise with elastic resistance is to utilize more muscle fibers
in the exercising muscle to continue stretching the elastic material.
